Ep. 40 Inherent Poetry with Aurora Brachman
In this episode, filmmaker Aurora Brachman discusses how she uses documentaries to understand the people in her life and shares the meanings beyond the surface with host Edward Frumkin. Finally in today’s concluding thought, Edward talks about parking cars.
Guest Bio: Aurora Brachman (she/her) is an award-winning documentary filmmaker drawn to stories about intimate relationships within families and communities. Her film Club Quarantine, about a virtual queer dance party, premiered on the New York Times Op-Docs. Her short documentary, Joychild, about a young gender-expansive child, was acquired by The New Yorker, broadcast on POV, and shortlisted for an IDA Award. Her work has screened at numerous festivals including Sundance, True/False, Hot Docs, Outfest, NewFest, AFI Docs, and DOC NYC, and selected for Vimeo Staff Picks. Aurora primarily makes work about the experiences of Black, brown, and Queer people and is committed to collaborative and ethical storytelling. Aurora is a graduate of the MFA program in Documentary Film at Stanford University, a 2020 Sundance Ignite Fellow, and a 2022 SFFilm House Resident. She is also the recipient of a Fulbright Scholarship in filmmaking. She currently works as a co-producer for Concordia Studios.
Time Codes:
1:08 - Aurora's Film Upbringings
5:20 - Aurora's Path to Being a Documentarian
11:43 - Exploring Coping within Queer Communities in Club Quarantine
16:00 - The Sounds of Club Quarantine and Avoiding the Doc as a Music Video
22:05 - The Real World's Presence in Club Quarantine
27:53 - The Role of Playground and Meeting Lou (ze/zir) in Joychild
31:30 - Shooting Joychild in 16mm and Benefts of In-Sync Sound
38:00 - Liberation of Showing Vulvas in The Gallery That Destroys All Shame
43:35 - The Gallery's Importance During This Current and Past Movements For the Fight of Reproductive Rights
46:45 - Exploring Family Histories in Still Waters
54:05 - The Therapeutic Process, Psychological Study and Nature in Still Waters
1:02:50 - Connecting Suzanne, Suzanne in Still Waters and Aurora's recommendation: Nalujuk Night
1:07:16 - Concluding Thought: Parked Cars
Show Notes:
Aurora's Completed Films: Club Quarantine (presented with its NY Times Op-Doc article), Joychild (presented with its New Yorker article), and The Gallery That Destroys All Shame
This episode is available on Spotify, Google Podcasts, RadioPublic, Apple Music, and Stitcher.